U is for Under-Appreciated Albums

By Jason Hunter

The Unforgettable Fire (1984) by U2

While not U2's most popular album from those early years, The Unforgettable Fire is my favorite from this era. Greatly influenced by Brian Eno's efforts, it's got this shimmering, treble-y quality in its mix that makes songs like "A Sort of Homecoming", "Unforgettable Fire", "Bad", "Indian Summer Sky", and the handful of instrumental tracks work so well. So much of what they played around with here foreshadows The Joshua Tree. The opening notes of "A Sort of Homecoming" are glorious, but in a subtle manor unlike "War" or "New Year's Day" and hearken back to some of the more moody songs on their debut LP (see "An Cat Dubh/Into the Heart" and "The Ocean"). Also, the tribal chanting halfway through "A Sort of Homecoming" is something I can't recall in any other U2 song and it fits the emotion of this particular sound – sad, but hopeful – so well. The 2009 reissue brings some of U2's best b-sides from these sessions to a larger audience. "Three Sunrises" and "Love Comes Tumbling" are the highlights but it's "11 O'Clock Tick Tock" that is the real gem. It's got that razor-sharp post-punk sound and one my all-time favorite riffs by The Edge.

Universal Mother (1994) by Sinead O' Connor

Following her breakout album I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got, Sinead O'Connor ditches the acoustic guitar driven pop for a (mostly) piano and strings. The result in an very intimate and personal record with a number of stand-out songs such as "Red Football" with its creeping build to a menacing finale, the buoyant "John, I Love You" and the honest, realistic depiction of adult commitment in "Thank You For Hearing Me". The trip-hop influenced "Fire on Babylon" and the spoken-word "Famine" showcase Sinead's ability to successful incorporate various sounds into her songs, something she would do again on future releases. For all the political rants and anger present on this album it is the ballad "In This Heart" – a beautifully layered, a capella number – that haunts me. I always listen to it dangerously loud, letting each vocalist reverberate around in my head. It's the closest I can get to re-experiencing it's live performance at Wolf Trap Virginia, which was legendary.